Contents

"In all my life I have never again been able to find such a beautiful melody." -Chopin, on Op. 10, No. 3[1]

Chopin's Études are some of the hardest pieces of all the works in concert piano repertoire. Because of this, the music remain famous and are often played at concerts.[1] Some are so famous they have been given nicknames, but none were given by Chopin.[1]

All twenty-seven Études were published during Chopin's lifetime; Opus 10, the first group of twelve were written between 1829 and 1832, and were published in 1833, in France, Germany, and England. The twelve Études of Opus 25 were composed at various times between 1832 and 1836, and were published in the same countries in 1837. The final three, part of a series called "Méthode des méthodes de piano" compiled by Moscheles and Fétis, were composed in 1839 but with no opus number.

The first Études of the Opus 10 set were written when Chopin was still in his teens. Chopin's Études elevated the musical form from purely utilitarian exercises to great artistic masterpieces.[2] At a concert in which Chopin performed his opus 25, Robert Schumann said "À la Chopin".[2]